Fluid applicator assembly

ABSTRACT

A fluid applicator assembly including a retainer ring adapted to be snugly fitted within the open end of a container, the ring having at one end an inwardly extending peripheral web member having a valve opening therein, a cover means secured to the forward end of the retainer, a valve stem extending through the valve opening and having an abutment at one end lying against a cover means for the assembly and a valve head at its other end lying against the underside of the web, and a coil spring urging the valve stem in a forward direction, the wall of the web opening being inclined forwardly so as to define a valve seat and the wall of the web opening being further inclined inwardly so as to permit easy snap-in insertion of the valve stem through the opening.

United States Patent Frain et a].

[ 51 May 16, 1972 [541 FLUID APPLICATOR ASSEMBLY [22] Filed: Aug. 14,i970 [21] Appl.N0.: 63,779

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 929,953 6/1963 Great Britain ..40l/206Primary xaminerLawrence Charles A!torneyWatson. Cole. Grindle & Watson57 ABSTRACT A fluid applicator assembly including a retainer ringadapted to be snugly fitted within the open end of a container. the ringhaving at one end an inwardly extending peripheral web member having avalve opening therein, a cover means secured to the forward end of theretainer, a valve stem extending through the valve opening and having anabutment at one end lying against a cover means for the assembly and avalve head at its other end lying against the underside of the web, anda coil spring urging the valve stem in a forward direction, the wall ofthe web opening being inclined forwardly so as to define a valve seatand the wall of the web opening being further inclined inwardly so as topermit easy snap-in insertion of the valve stem through the opening.

2 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures PATENTEI] HAY 1 6 i972 INVENTORS, JOHN JFew/v EMA/K 7." Beam/5e BY 4,204, 64, alt/SJ! ATTORNEYS FLUID APPLICATORASSEMBLY This invention relates generally to fluid applicators and moreparticularly to a fluid applicator assembly wherein easy insertion canbe effected by a snapping in of the valve stem within the valve openingduring assembly.

Although many of the fluid applicators heretofore devised make use of aspecific spring means for urging the head of a valve in a valve-closingposition against a valve opening, it has been found that many of theseprior art devices do not efiectively apply a quantity of fluid onto theintended surface in an even and uninterrupted manner because of theirrelatively complex assembly of parts. This not only creates anadditional cost in labor and materials but oftentimes reduces theeffectiveness of the fluid applicator assembly if such parts are notproperly assembled. It is, accordingly, the principal object of thisinvention to provide a fluid applicator assembly which requires aminimum number of parts and yet which is highly efficient in effectivelytransferring a quantity of fluid onto a surface intended to be marked ina continuous and even flow without leakage, spillage or blotching.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a fluid applicatorassembly which employs the use of a spring urged valve stem having avalve head which may be easily inserted through a valve opening at theforward end of a retainer ring without the need for subsequent assemblyof parts.

A further object of this invention is to provide such a fluid applicatorassembly in which the valve opening is located within a relatively thinweb member allowing the valve stem to be easily snapped in with itsvalve head resting behind the valve opening, such insertion taking placewithout restraint by such web member.

Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present inventionwill become apparent from the following detailed description of theinvention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawingswherein:

FIG. I is an elevational view in section of the fluid applicatorassembly in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 but illustrating the device when inuse; and

HO. 3 is a sectional view taken substantially along line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

Turning now to the drawings wherein like reference characters refer tolike and corresponding parts throughout the several views, the fluidapplicator assembly generally designated by the numeral is shown in FIG.1 in its relation to a container ll seen therein in phantom and shown insection in FIG. 2 of the drawings. A retainer ring 12 is provided and isadapted to be snugly fitted within the open end of container l l, theretainer ring having near its forward end a web member 13 having anopening 14 provided therein and also having an outwardly and upwardlyextending peripheral flange 15 which is slightly swaged inwardly so asto present a constricted circular groove 16 defined also by an upwardlyextending rib 17 of a generally circular configuration. A cover 18,which may be in the form of a nylon substance or foam plastic or othersimilar material, is tightly secured within the groove [6 along with aporous resilient member 19 which is laminated or otherwise bonded to theunderside of the cover 18 the member 19 being of a coarse polyurethanefoam or similar substance.

A valve stem 21 is disposed through the opening 14 and has at one end aconical valve head 22 and at its other end an abutment 23 which is madeto lie against the underside of the porous resilient member 19. A coilspring 24 is disposed between the upper side of the web member 13 andthe abutment 23 thereby urging the valve stem forwardly so that theconical valve head 22 will be made to lie against the underside of theweb member 13 as shown in the drawings. The wall defining the web memberopening 14 is inclined forwardly or toward one end of the retainer ringas at 25 and the wall of the web member opening is also inclinedinwardly or toward the other end of the retainer ring as at 26. Theinclination 25 of the web member opening defines a valve seat for theconical valve head while the other inclination 26 of the web memberopening is provided for the purpose of permitting the valve stem withits valve head 22 to be inserted through the valve opening from theforward end with a snap-in movement. Since the retainer ring 12 ispreferably made of molded polyethylene and since its web member 13 isdesigned to be relatively thin in cross-section as compared with thelength of the valve stem 21, insertion of the valve stem issubstantially unrestrained by reason of the thin web member.

During use of the instant fluid applicator assembly, the porousresilient member 19 is simply pressed against the top of a surface Swhereby the conical valve head 22 is moved away from the inclinedsurface 25 of the valve seat as shown in F IG. 2 of the drawings so asto permit a quantity of fluid F, which was obviously entrained withinthe retainer ring 12, to by-pass the web member 13 through the opening14 and therefore completely saturate the member 19 which in turn wetsthe cover l8 and applies a suitable marking to the surface 8. As can beseen from the drawings, the valve stem 21 is slightly tapered in aforward direction so that with only a slight depression of the member19, the opening 14 will become uncovered. Also, it can be seen in FIG. 3that the stem 21 is circular in cross-section as well as its abutment23.

From the foregoing, it can be seen that a simple, yet highly effectivefluid applicator assembly has been devised making use of a significantlyfew number of parts by reason of the valve stem being capable ofsnapping in to the valve opening in a manner as described. An evendistribution of the fluid from the container through the cover isassured while, at the same time, the valve stem design has been vastlysimplified since it may be easily molded as a one-piece polyethylenemember without the need for securing together any portion of the valvemeans. This has been found to be not only a tremendous time and laborsaver, but it also improves the efficiency of the assembly since partswhich must otherwise be assembled are not needed for this applicatorconstruction.

Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present inventionare possible in the light of the above teachings. For example, theapplicator or dauber of the present invention is capable of meteringfluid having various viscosities in an effective manner and is adaptedfor use in applying or marking any surface for which applicators of thistype are feasible. It is, therefore, to be understood that within thescope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwisethan as specifically described.

What is claimed is:

l. A fluid applicator assembly comprising a retainer ring having at oneend an inwardly extending peripheral web member integrally securedthereto and having an opening therein, a cover secured at said one endand a resilient porous member disposed beneath and in contact with saidcover and also secured at said one end, a valve stem disposed in saidweb member opening and having an abutment at one end in contact with theunderside of said resilient porous member and having a conical valvehead at its other end in contact with the inner side of said web member,said valve stem also being conical in shape with said conical valve headlocated at the larger end of said stern, a coil spring disposed betweenthe upper side of said web member and said abutment thereby urging saidvalve stem in a forward direction, the wall of said web member openinghaving a surface inclined toward said retainer one end so as to define avalve seat for said conical valve head, said web member wall having alsoa surface inclined inwardly of said retainer so as to permit an easysnap in insertion of said valve stem into said web member opening, saidlarger end of said stem being disposed between said inclined surfaceswhereby slight inward movement of said porous resilient cover againstthe action of said spring serves to move said valve head away from saidvalve seat to thereby open said web member opening as said larger end ismoved slightly inwardly of said web member.

2. The fluid applicator according to claim 1 wherein said web member isdimensioned to be relatively thin as compared to the length of saidvalve stem whereby the snap-in insertion of said valve stem isunrestrained by reason of said web member.

1. A fluid applicator assembly comprising a retainer ring having at oneend an inwardly extending peripheral web member integrally securedthereto and having an opening therein, a cover secured at said one endand a resilient porous member disposed beneath and in contact with saidcover and also secured at said one end, a valve stem disposed in saidweb member opening and having an abutment at one end in contact with theunderside of said resilient porous member and having a conical valvehead at its other end in contact with the inner side of said web member,said valve stem also being conical in shape with said conical valve headlocated at the larger end of said stem, a coil spring disposed betweenthe upper side of said web member and said abutment thereby urging saidvalve stem in a forward direction, the wall of said web member openinghaving a surface inclined toward said retainer one end so as to define avalve seat for said conical valve head, said web member wall having alsoa surface inclined inwardly of said retainer so as to permit an easysnap-in insertion of said valve stem into said web member opening, saidlarger end of said stem being disposed between said inclined surfaceswhereby slight inward movement of said porous resilient cover againstthe action of said spring serves to move said valve head away from saidvalve seat to thereby open said web member opening as said larger end ismoved slightly inwardly of said web member.
 2. The fluid applicatoraccording to claim 1 wherein said web member is dimensioned to berelatively thin as compared to the length of said valve stem whereby thesnap-in insertion of said valve stem is unrestrained by reason of saidweb member.